Let’s have more start-ups and e-sports in Turkey in 2016

Today is the last day of 2015. Time to look back and learn from our mistakes so as not to repeat them in 2016. It is also a day to make wishes for 2016. 

I have four wishes for 2016. I wish that 2016 will be a year when the importance of free speech is really understood in Turkey. I know that the chances are very slim and that the current systematic oppression is very good for the government but still, maybe Santa Claus will be able to bring us some freedom from the North Pole, as we, the citizens of this beautiful country, have failed to make authorities understand what we lose when freedom of speech is oppressed. 

Secondly, I wish that the number of successful start-ups in Turkey will rise in 2016. 2015 was a good year for the start-up world but not good enough compared to the rest of the world. We have seen lots of investments but not enough exits. I think this wish has a better chance of becoming a reality than the first one. The start-up community is thriving and soon bigger companies will also jump on the bandwagon. When that happens, we will be able to speak about a complete start-up ecosystem. 

My third wish is regarding how big companies manage their non-core functions. I wish that big family businesses will realize that it is better to outsource everything that doesn’t have anything to do with the core businesses of their holdings. The biggest start-up killer in Turkey is the tendency of big companies to internalize everything. It is a complete waste of time, resources and energy. 

My last wish is that we would realize how big is e-sports around the world. Turkey has an amazing potential for e-sports with its young, vibrant and tech savvy population but we do nothing about it. Whereas in the U.S., companies that provide services for e-sports are earning millions of dollars in funding such as Vulcun. 
According to Business Insider, Vulcun is a fantasy league for e-sports (aka pro video games). Sequoia’s Aaref Hilaly funded the company with $13.3 million.

“If you are not a teenager, you may not have heard of ‘e-sports,’ meaning competitive multi-player video gaming where teams compete against each other for prizes,”says Hilaly. “But it’s become a phenomenon: more people watch the finals of tournaments for League of Legends or Counter-Strike than any sporting event other than the Super Bowl. Vulcun is capitalizing on this trend by enabling e-sports participants to trade skins [digital goods],” Hilaly says.

I know that 2016 will not provide us everything but at least if we had things to look forward to in 2016, we can also find the power to work on them. I will do my best to tell people about the four things that I have mentioned above. I hope that there are some important issues for you and that will make you work harder in 2016. May all your wishes come true.